Pretty Dang Good Granola

I like a little crunch in my yogurt, but have yet to find a granola that has all the right ingredients for my taste. To make it appeal to me and be a good snack for my son, the ideal granola would have to have: nuts, a little fruit, and NO candy or chocolate. Of course I also want it organic and delicious.

Having no luck finding any suitable and having a little free time on my hands, I decided to try making some myself. I googled a number of recipes to get an idea of where to start and found a lot of recipes using brown sugar and butter. The recipe below uses what I like to call ‘healthy substitutes’ in place of the traditional ingredients; some flaxseed options, and raw nuts.  Believe me, it tastes great!!

Pretty Dang Good Granola

This makes approximately 11 cups of granola (fits comfortably into a gallon ziploc bag)
15 min. prep
40 min. cook time

Dry Ingredients:

5 C. Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (Wheat or White)
3/4 C. Sesame Seeds
1/4 C. Flaxseed Meal
2 to 3 C. Seeds/Nuts – raw and unsalted (I used a combination of pumpkin, sunflower, and sliced almond)
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. salt (optional)

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 C. Unsweetened Applesauce
1/4 C. Honey
1/4 C. Maple Syrup
2 to 3 T. Flaxseed Oil

Fruit Option:
1 Cup of Dried Fruits, chopped as needed (I used raisins and chopped apricots).

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325. In a very large bowl combine the dry ingredients and nuts, mix. In a small bowl or measuring cup combine wet ingredients. Keep the fruit out of the mix until the toasting is complete! Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix until evenly coated. Spread onto two large baking sheets and bake for approximately 40 minutes or until it’s reached your preference of toastiness, stirring once or twice during the baking time. Set the trays out to cool then mix in the fruit and store in an airtight container. Enjoy!